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The State government has the power to renew the lease period, say officials
| Photo Credit: File photo: K.R. DEEPAK
Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), the corporate entity of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP), is now struggling for manganese ore required for steel production, at various stages.
The reason is that the lease period of RINL’s captive manganese ore mines at Garbham village in Merakamudidam mandal of Vizianagaram district had expired on October 7, 2022. The RINL-VSP used to maintain the captive mines of manganese in the extent of 264.54 hectares in Vizianagaram for almost 30 years till the lease period lapsed.
The State Government has the power to renew the lease period if requested by the lessee.
Along with RINL-VSP management, Visakhapatnam MP M.V.V. Satyanarayana also requested Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy to renew the lease to RINL-VSP. The MP wrote to the Chief Minister in response to the representation made by the RINL-VSP Steel Executives Association (SEA).
“Yes, we have represented to Visakhapatnam MP regarding renewal of manganese ore lease for the Garbham mines in Vizianagaram to RINL-VSP. The MP wrote a letter to the CM. But, there is no further progress in response to our representations. The RINL-VSP is now procuring manganese ore from alternative sources by paying huge amounts,” SEA president Katam SS Chandra Rao told The Hindu.
According to RINL sources, at least 500 metric tonnes of manganese is required for steel production of 3 to 4 lakh metric tonnes per month.
Till the expiry date of its licence (7th October 2022), to extract manganese ore from captive mines in Vizianagaram district, the RINL used to spend around ₹5,000-₹6,000 per ton of manganese. Later, to procure manganese from Nagpur-headquartered Miniratna state-owned manganese ore mining company MOIL (formerly known as Manganese Ore (India) Ltd.), the RINL is spending between ₹11,000 and ₹13,000 for one ton of manganese. The MOIL operates its mines in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. The RINL is procuring the ore from the nearest place.
“Yes, we are procuring manganese mines from the MOIL for time being at a commercial rate as RINL’s captive ore (on lease) in nearby Vizianagaram district is yet to be renewed. We are spending extra money to buy the ore. We hope that the issue will be resolved and the lapsed lease with Garbham mines in Vizianagaram is renewed at the earliest from the authorities concerned,” an RINL-VSP official, who did not wish to be named, told The Hindu.
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